red hill - jamie mcguire

agreed to drive him home from school. By the end of the phone call he was sobbing, barely able to
describe how hard it was to watch Cooper and his family so worried and sad.
Bryce trusted me to love him anyway, even at his worst, just like I did when I was snapping at my
dad for things out of his control. Dad always listened patiently, and then no matter what I said or with
how much anger I said it, he responded with words of unconditional love. After he and Mom split,
that was one trust I didn’t make him earn back, and he took the responsibility of that trust very
seriously. That wasn’t the only thing I pretended I hadn’t learned from him.
“Wait,” Bryce said, mimicking Joey’s deep voice and holding out his arm. He had the most
ridiculous, smug look on his face, a thousand percent more arrogant than Joey’s. “Clear.” Bryce
rolled his eyes.
“He just got back from a tour in Afghanistan. They talk like that, don’t they”
“Who cares” Bryce seethed. “He keeps telling us what to do. I’m fucking sick of it. We somehow
managed before he came along.”
“True,” I said, nodding.
“We don’t need him. We should leave him here. He probably knows how to hotwire a car. There
are dozens here to choose from.” When I didn’t respond, Bryce’s eyebrows pulled together, and he
ducked his head to make eye contact. “What are you trying to say You want him with us”
Bryce and I had been together so long, I didn’t have to say everything. It was one of the many
things I appreciated about him.
“He’s a soldier. It makes sense to keep him around, don’t you think” With his intimidating size
and piercing glare, Joey’s looks alone were enough to scare off any living person who might want to
harm us, and his particular skill set made him an asset against the dead ones. Bryce was taller than
Joey, but his biceps didn’t bulge from his sleeves the way Joey’s did. Come to think of it, all of
Joey’s muscles seemed to bulge from his clothes.
“No! I don’t!” he said, incredulous. His anger helped my thoughts break free of the chiseled parts
of Joey’s body—which were all of them.
Bryce paced, and after several minutes, his breathing slowed, and he stopped fidgeting. “You . . .
do you really think we need him”
I shrugged. “Not if you don’t. But, he’s a good shot. And he’s smart. And I’d rather have him
ducking into a house first than you.”
Bryce glanced up at me from under his brow, fighting a smile. “I love you, you know that”
I wrapped my arms around his waist as he towered over me. “You should. I’m fairly awesome. Or
so I’ve been told.”
He laughed once. “That was probably me. Actually I’m sure it was me. I’m your biggest fan.”
“My tallest fan,” I said with a smile, reaching up on the balls of my feet to kiss him as he leaned
down. His soft lips touched mine, reminding me of better days. Normal days.
Bryce pulled me over to the box springs, and we lay together on the bumpy springs and wood
covered by a thin layer of fabric. He unzipped my jacket, and I kissed him, silently agreeing to his
equally silent request.
“We might as well christen the zombie apocalypse,” he whispered in my ear.